Jackuul wrote:Ms. Fuzzy, Sweetie, Cherry, followed by the unsexed (you can't tell if a spider is a boy or girl until they are much much older and have molted a few times) Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Epsilon.

Please don't tell me you turn them over and "look" for external/internal plumbing parts!

@ iluvk9: Ventral Sexing can be done - but it will only tell you if it might be a male. The only accurate way is to look at the inside of a molting with a microscope or high powered macro-lens for a part that only females have to store male... uh... squiggly wigglys...

It is important to know because when males reach maturity... they will die within a year, with a few very lucky exceptions. Females, on the other hand (this is true in the genus Grammostola) can live past the age of 25.

@ amazincc: They're all pretty docile for spiders in general, but are normal in their genus (Grammostola) as most if not all with a few rare exceptions are very docile and well behaved (rare for kicking hairs, and almost never a threat pose). They'll sit on your hand for the warmth.

@pitbullmamaliz and katiek0417: A lot of people, as you know, view pitbulls with revulsion and fear, and the same is true with tarantulas, as myths and rumors about them being deadly, poisonous, or flesh eaters are on par with pits having a "locking jaw" "strongest bite" and "always mean". Before I had them (tarantulas) I was actually severely impacted by arachnophobia. However I started getting rid of that by getting the babies (they're not pictured here) and getting used to them, followed by these sub-adults. Genus Grammostola is very docile, and they don't get nearly as big as the T. blondi (goliath bird eating spider - it's actually unable to eat birds and it can't even jump, as a fall from a distance of mere inches can kill it due to its abdomen being fragile in the commonly seen obese specimens) which can grow past one foot from front left leg to back right leg. The rosies will likely max out between 6-8 inches from leg to leg, and the baby pulchras likely will reach around the same size, although it will take them a decade.

There are tarantulas that will strike at you out of fear - but it is defensiveness and almost never ever aggression... they consider their tanks as their homes, and their hides especially as their sanctuary. Invaders in the wild are likely to eat them - so they have to have some defensive measures. New World Tarantulas (fuzzy butts like the rosies and the blondi) all have what are called urticating hairs (they break off and cause irritation) which they can kick at you. Because of this, they are actually docile, since they have a loaded weapon they can use. Thankfully Grammostola hairs have little to no effect on humans - however blondi's, even without kicking, can cause some irritation to rashes because their hairs target primates (think of yourself as a new world monkey, and there's this huge spider that tastes good to you [lets say like shrimp]... thus the huge spider eventually evolves hairs that make them undesirable to you and cause you irritation).

There's also tons of other rumors about arachnids like the Camel spider (not even a true spider but in a totally different order of arachnid) - like they are "faster than a person" or "have a venom that is a narcotic that puts flesh to sleep so they can eat chunks of your flesh" or "have huge fangs that can pierce Kevlar" and the best "grow to be over two feet". Camel spiders are not true spiders, they lack fangs, they can only scurry to 10 mph (fast, but not as fast as a human running for its life) and best of all, they are venom-less and grow to less than 3 inches. They can bite, but so can a cat when you mess with it.

Some Old World (African and Asian) tarantulas do posses a powerful venom, but there has never been a recorded death from any tarantula, and these old worlds have the potency for one very important reason. They lack urticating hairs - their lines of defense are either to run away, or to threaten to bite, and finally to bite. They are much more defensive as well, due to their lack of a "loaded weapon" on their butts. Whereas a new world can spin its butt toward you and fling hairs by kicking them with their back legs, all an old world can hope to do is intimidate and bite you - then run away as fast as it can.

There is a special case of spider, a new world, that has one additional line of defense as they are arboreal (live in trees). They can shoot their poop up to three feet. Yes - the terrifying poop shooting spider... it's so dangerous it could leave you with a bad taste and strange smell

Jackuul wrote:@pitbullmamaliz and katiek0417: A lot of people, as you know, view pitbulls with revulsion and fear, and the same is true with tarantulas, as myths and rumors about them being deadly, poisonous, or flesh eaters are on par with pits having a "locking jaw" "strongest bite" and "always mean". Before I had them (tarantulas) I was actually severely impacted by arachnophobia. However I started getting rid of that by getting the babies (they're not pictured here) and getting used to them, followed by these sub-adults. Genus Grammostola is very docile, and they don't get nearly as big as the T. blondi (goliath bird eating spider - it's actually unable to eat birds and it can't even jump, as a fall from a distance of mere inches can kill it due to its abdomen being fragile in the commonly seen obese specimens) which can grow past one foot from front left leg to back right leg. The rosies will likely max out between 6-8 inches from leg to leg, and the baby pulchras likely will reach around the same size, although it will take them a decade.

My bare hand squished one when I was about 8 years old...that pretty much scarred me for life!

Jackuul wrote:There are tarantulas that will strike at you out of fear - but it is defensiveness and almost never ever aggression... they consider their tanks as their homes, and their hides especially as their sanctuary. Invaders in the wild are likely to eat them - so they have to have some defensive measures. New World Tarantulas (fuzzy butts like the rosies and the blondi) all have what are called urticating hairs (they break off and cause irritation) which they can kick at you. Because of this, they are actually docile, since they have a loaded weapon they can use. Thankfully Grammostola hairs have little to no effect on humans - however blondi's, even without kicking, can cause some irritation to rashes because their hairs target primates (think of yourself as a new world monkey, and there's this huge spider that tastes good to you [lets say like shrimp]... thus the huge spider eventually evolves hairs that make them undesirable to you and cause you irritation).

I was going to ask you what "kick hair" meant, LOL. Thanks for all the fantastic information!

Never make someone a priority in your life when that someone treats you like an option.

I PEEKED a look at your little fuzzy friends. While I can't say I am warming up to them, I find it fascinating that there are people, such as yourself, who are knowledgeable about them and...well....to be honest....LIKE them, sort of as a pet.

I think someone here posted a photo of Mr. Bird Eating Spider you were referring to. He was GIGANTIC.

I believe pics were also posted of the camel spiders - I think it was with soldiers. It was gigantic and I couldn't sleep for days.

I know it's irrational, but I fear that every spider is going to leap off the wall at me. That's what I get for watching "Arachnophobia" once. *shudder* I can handle snakes, but no spiders. If it has more than 4 legs it creeps me out.

But thanks for the knowledge - I am a true nerd and love learning new things (even if I'm still scared of spiders!).

"Remember - every time your dog gets somewhere on a tight leash *a fairy dies and it's all your fault.* Think of the fairies." http://www.positivepetzine.com"

pitbullmamaliz wrote:I believe pics were also posted of the camel spiders - I think it was with soldiers. It was gigantic and I couldn't sleep for days.

It was a trick of perspective, the hand held it right in front of the camera while the rest were back behind. What you are really seeing is a close-up.

I know it's irrational, but I fear that every spider is going to leap off the wall at me. That's what I get for watching "Arachnophobia" once. *shudder* I can handle snakes, but no spiders. If it has more than 4 legs it creeps me out.

It's the same concept if you watch a film that portrays any animals as ghastly and beastly. Jumping Spiders, which are not in the same infraclass as tarantulas (Tarantulas are Mygalomorphs - their fangs point down) and are in fact Araneomorphs (Fangs point inward like pincers - additionally Araneomorphs consist of most spiders you will ever see, while Mygalomorphs are much sparser in terms of recorded species - tarantulas have only 900 while Araneomorphs make up tens of thousands, from recluses to widows to orb weavers to wolf spider) and have the best vision of all arthropods known at this time. Their visual acuity is 1/4th of ours, while a tarantula is virtually blind. They have the ability to see up to a few feet with clarity, and can track a target bug efficiently. However, like all jumping spiders, it is from where they jump that makes the difference.

It is because of their visual acuity that Jumping Spiders have a unique courtship which, while doing vibrations and tapping (like their distant tarantula relatives) also involves visual displays.

Protip: look carefully for the circles in the eyes, those are its internal retinas it can move and adjust to see around with. They are, of all the arthropods, the best visually endowed - not even the best insect eyesight (they're arthropods too, and the best insect is the dragonfly) comes close to the vision in these spiders.

If you have any kind of resource that has live tarantulas or spiders (which are well kept - neglect and environmental misinformation which leads to premature death is common for the poor things) I would recommend first seeing them in person up close behind glass and researching. Their is no better fear killer than absolute knowledge.

There are only about five or six known medically significant types of spiders (for a normal non allergic human - if you are allergic to wasps you are at a greater risk of a reaction, however some folks with these allergies show no symptoms when bitten by weak venom spiders, while others do) and you already know them. Widows (brown and black), recluses, the Atrax Robustus from Sydney Australia, mouse spiders, and possibly the Brazilian Wandering Spider, and finally (no recorded deaths) some of the old world tarantulas.

If you do find a place that is like the Butterfly Pavilion out here in Colorado they may let you hold a rose hair. Rosies are very common, very docile, and very unlikely to react to much. In fact the one out here is famous as it is "Rosie the Rosehair" and they give you a sticker for holding her. She's been held by tens of thousands of adults and children.

Unless that sticker is made of solid gold, ain't no way in hell I'm holding a spider. Or a hissing cockroach - a children's museum by me has those and my brother used to torment me with them while I was just trying to pet the baby chicks. *shudder* Off tangent.

And trust me, I totally understand that knowledge often overcomes fear, but not always. I know my chance of being attacked by a shark in the ocean is virtually nil, but I watch Shark Week and Jaws and am pretty knowledgeable about sharks - that just makes me more paranoid and I won't go in over my knees. Huh, I am totally like one of those people who fears pit bulls for no rational reason. Sobering thought.

"Remember - every time your dog gets somewhere on a tight leash *a fairy dies and it's all your fault.* Think of the fairies." http://www.positivepetzine.com"